Confirmed: TechCrunch50 conference is no more

The co-founders of the popular, contrarian TechCrunch50 showcase for tech startups have confirmed that the conference has been discontinued. TechCrunch editor Michael Arrington and Mahalo CEO Jason Calacanis say they each have plans for their own separate events.

Arrington’s TechCrunch Disrupt conference will be held on May 24-26 in New York. Calacanis’ still-unnamed event will be held in 2011.

The announcements confirm rumors at the last TechCrunch50 event that Calacanis and Arrington had decided not to do another show together.

(Disclosure: VentureBeat produces the DEMO conference which competed with TechCrunch50. I suppose TC50’s bad news is somehow good news for DEMO. Personally, I’m just glad the two events won’t be scheduled for the same day in different cities again.)

Both men are known for their outsize personalities and short tempers with people they deem incompetent. So it’s only natural that Internet gossips are looking for signs of a fight or a fallout. But despite any differences over TechCrunch50, Arrington and Calacanis claim to be friends rather than frenemies.

This morning, Arrington announced that Calacanis would be a speaker and panelist at TechCrunch Disrupt. As for the TechCrunch50 split, he wrote, “Sometimes, having more than one bull in the china shop can get a little messy.”

In a couple of tweets this morning, Calacanis wrote: “There will be no TechCrunch50 this year, but I will be speaking At TechCrunch Disrupt and doing my own show in 2011 … Mike @arrington & I are still friends. We had different vision for TechCrunch50 is all. He is doing Disrupt & I’m doing my version of TC50.”